Volvo: We will be responsible for accidents caused by our driverless cars

[Logical]

Volvo has become one of the first car companies to confirm that it will accept full responsibility for any accidents caused by its future driverless cars. The carmaker's stance is an effort to speed up regulations which currently fail to fully recognise how autonomous cars and their manufacturers should be liable.

Mercedes and Google have made similar claims, as they and the industry as a whole work to develop autonomous features which take control and responsibility away from the driver. Volvo has described current US and European law regarding self-driving cars and liability as "a patchwork of rules and regulations".

..................................................

To help fix this, Samuelsson proposed that Volvo will take full responsibility for any incidents caused by a design flaw in its autonomous cars - and, countering claims by some autonomous car backers that computer-controlled vehicles will never make mistakes, he said driverless technology "will never be perfect...one day there will be an accident."

Speaking to the BBC, Samuelsson said: "Volvo wants to remove the uncertainty of who would be responsible in the event of a crash. At the moment it could be the manufacturer of the technology, the driver, a maker of a component in a car."

http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/volvo-we-will-be-responsible-accidents-caused-by-our-driverless-cars-1523260

[PatrickforO]

1. While the idea of driverless cars is very appealing to me, having fought traffic for nearly 40

years, there are some serious questions:

1. Licensing - can a minor be the only passenger in a driverless car?
2. Liability - say your driverless car gets faked out by someone who doesn't signal, accidentally leaves a signal, makes an abrupt move without signalling or runs a red and is part of an accident - how hard will it be to collect? And what if it's your driverless car's fault?
3. Insurance - in lots of states carrying at least basic liability insurance is the law. How will insurance be approached during the market transition - when there are still lots of driver controlled vehicles on the road?
4. If the control system in your driverless car goes out and the car causes a serious accident, who gets the ticket? Will the other driver be able to sue you or will they have to go after the manufacturer?

Like I said, this will be great - no stopping it from happening - but we've got to answer these and other questions.

[Logical]

2. I imagine it will be like when people started flying. Lots of things to work out but exciting. nt